Nintendo targets Switch and NES Classic modifiers
Nintendo has filed a copyright and trademark infringement suit against an individual as well as John Does for allegedly illegally modifying its consoles.
In a claim filed on Tuesday, December 11, at the US District Court for the Central District of California Southern Division, the “Mario Kart” creator alleged that an individual from California, Mikel Euskaldunak, has been offering users a modification service for Nintendo consoles.
The service allegedly allows users to play unauthorised copies of the company’s games. The two consoles mentioned in the filing are the Nintendo Switch and the NES Classic Edition.
According to Nintendo, Euskaldunak has a profile on “Offer Up”, a website which allows users to buy and sell goods and services. Nintendo claimed that Euskaldunak and the unidentified individuals sell a modification service for the Switch which allows the user to play any games they want.
Allegedly, these games are copied from unauthorised sources to a memory card and then loaded onto the consoles.
Typically, users are required to purchase games from the official Nintendo Switch online shop or buy physical copies. Nintendo claimed that Euskaldunak and John Does provide customers with “free” games with every purchase of an illegal modification service.
The filing said that NES Classic Edition consoles are also sold through “Offer Up”. When these are purchased directly from Nintendo, the consoles come with 30 games preloaded for users to play.
Nintendo alleged that instead of the 30 preloaded games offered by Nintendo, the consoles sold on “Offer Up” are pre-loaded with over 800 games. The company said these are sold by the individuals for $15 above retail price.
According to the document, on November 28, the accused parties sold a modification for the Nintendo Switch console together with an SD card that contained unauthorised copies of games—one of which was “Super Smash Bros. Ultimate”.
Nintendo stated that Euskaldunak and the unknown individuals acquired the copy from an unauthorised and unlawful source, citing that the games release date in the US was not until December 7.
In its filing, Nintendo stated that illegal copying is “a large-scale international problem” with “great financial consequences” for the company, and estimated that the individuals have modified over 100 consoles.
Nintendo is seeking a permanent injunction, an order for the seizure and the destruction of all modification chips and products in the accused parties’ possession, as well as 300% of their profits.
Nintendo has been vigilant in protecting its IP rights in the recent past. In October, the Tokyo District Court ruled in favour of Nintendo when it ordered a go-karting company, called MariCar, to stop using the likeness of “Mario Kart” characters.
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